Gael Monfils started his campaign at the BNP Paribas Open with an easy 6 – 3 6 – 3 win over Matthew Ebden. The Australian couldn’t find the answer to Gael’s defensive game with the former World no.6 winning 49.18% of the points played on Ebden’s serve. Despite long absence in 2017, Monfils is enjoying great success in 2018 with the 31-year-old claiming his 7th career title in the season-opening Qatar ExxonMobil in Doha.

Playing in Indian Wells brings great memories to John Isner. Known as one of the best servers in tennis history, the fast balls and high bounce in the California desert suit his game with the 32-year-old reaching the BNP Paribas Open final in 2012. Nevertheless, the last months haven’t been easy for Isner with the American No.2 winning only 28.57% of the matches played so far in 2018.

This will be the 10th career meeting between these two players with Monfils leading on the h2h by 5 – 4.

Despite the balance on the h2h, it’s impossible to trust on Isner at the moment. Adding to this, Monfils won four of their last five official encounters on the ATP World Tour. The bookmakers are well aware of Gael’s recent dominance over this opponent with the French as the favourite at 67/100 at William Hill while Isner is available at 5/4 at 5Dimes. With this in mind, our suggestion is for you to add Monfils to your betting picks as the most valuable play for this contest.

Felix Auger-Aliassime continues to impress in the California desert. Known as one of the most promising players on the ATP World Tour, the 17-year-old became the fourth-youngest player ever to crack the top 200 of the ATP ranking. Taking a look now at Auger-Aliassime’s campaign on this event, the Canadian teenager reaches this stage of the competition after an impressive 6 – 2 7 – 6 win over his fellow countryman Vasek Pospisil.

Milos Raonic hopes to rediscover top form in Indian Wells. The former world No.3 has enlisted the help of Goran Ivanisevic for the BNP Paribas Open. Raonic is currently outside the top 35 after winning only 25.00% of his last eight matches on the ATP World Tour. Adding to this, the injury-plagued Canadian decided to cut his 2017 short after suffering a calf injury in early October at the Japan Open.

The bookmakers expect a straightforward win from Milos with the 27-year-old as the heavy favourite at 3/10 at BetVictor while Auger-Aliassime is available at 59/20 at 5Dimes. Even though we agree with Raonic’s favouritism, this should be a much closer encounter than the odds suggest. Having said that, our advice is for you to place a bet on the Over 22 at 87/100 at Pinnacle as the best betting approach for this contest.